Engineers keep telling us there’s plenty of scope for development left in cars, and the Volkswagen XL1 is the proof

The pair drive through a seamless seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. Actually, the total clutch count is three – two in the gearbox and another between the engine and motor – to allow the car sometimes to be driven on electric power alone.

The XL1’s all-up weight of 795kg is impressive, but its aerodynamics are even more staggering. Thanks in part to a frontal area barely two-thirds that of a Polo, its drag factor is half that of equivalent cars.

The instruments, info screen and gearchange are as classy and familiar from production VWs as my view of London’s streets through the steeply raked windscreen, bounded each side by surprisingly thin, bare metal A-pillars.

When I remark on them, my passenger, a Belgian engineer called Steven, tells me VW resisted trimming the pillars because it would have added 3mm to their thickness, when thinness is the target.

Press the start button and there’s no sound unless the 5.5kWh lithium ion battery (under the passenger’s feet) needs charging, which it usually doesn’t. You see a ‘Ready’ notice on the dash, select D and squeeze the accelerator.

The car moves willingly away and picks up speed easily, advertising its light weight. Once rolling it maintains speed remarkably well because there’s very little aero drag, plus there’s a built-in freewheel.

The steering is unassisted (a big weight saving) because the wheels and tyres are skinny, but the car is easy to manoeuvre once you get used to the way rim effort builds in corners. In every way, the XL1 is a neat and easy handler.

Given a relative lack of suspension travel because the car is so low, it also absorbs road irregularities well, although you have to watch London’s ruts and speed bumps.